When electric characteristics of a semiconductor integrated circuit are inspected, there is generally used an inspection device electrically connecting an external electrode of the semiconductor integrated circuit to a measuring device and performing inspection. As a prior art inspection device, there is an inspection device 82 using a pogopin type (spring-incorporating contact pin) conductive contact 81 illustrated in FIG. 20.
The pogopin type conductive contact 81 has arranged in the interior of a cylinder body 83 thereof a coil-shaped compression spring 84, one plunger 85 and the other plunger 86. A tip end of the one plunger 85 protrudes upward from the cylinder body 83 in an advanceable and retractable manner; a tip end of the other plunger 86 protrudes downward from the cylinder body 83 in an advanceable and retractable manner. The compression spring 84 is arranged between the one plunger 85 and the other plunger 86, urging the two plungers 85 and 86 in a protruding direction.
By means of expansion and contraction of the compression spring 84, the one plunger 85 is pressed against an external electrode 88 of a semiconductor integrated circuit 87 and at the same time, the other plunger 86 is pressed against a land electrode 91 of an inspection circuit board 90 connected to a measuring device 89. Consequently, the external electrode 88 and the land electrode 91 are electrically connected through the two plungers 85 and 86 and the cylinder body 83.
The inspection circuit board 90 is arranged in one direction relative to the semiconductor integrated circuit 87, i.e., in a direction opposite to a face where the external electrode 88 is formed. The reason for this is to electrically connect the external electrode 88 and land electrode 91 at a shortest distance by use of the conductive contact 81.
In recent years, with increasing requests for high density of semiconductor integrated circuit, in order to allow a package-on-package (hereinafter, POP for short) structure stacking semiconductor integrated circuits after assembly, there have been developed as a new semiconductor integrated circuit package configuration, semiconductor integrated circuits having electrodes on each of the two opposite faces thereof; thus, an inspection device capable of handling such semiconductor integrated circuit structure is required. Also, as the operating speed of electric signal between the stacked semiconductor integrated circuits increases, as for the inspection device, improvement in electric performance, i.e., loss reduction of transmission path is required.
In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-208793, there is described an inspection device for a semiconductor integrated circuit provided with a pogopin type (spring-incorporating contact pin) conductive contact.
However, as illustrated in FIG. 21, when the inspection device 82 described above is used for an electric characteristics inspection of the semiconductor integrated circuit 87 having external electrodes 88a and 88b on two opposite faces 87a and 87b, the following problem arises.
In the prior art inspection device 82, the inspection circuit board 90 is arranged in one direction relative to the semiconductor integrated circuit 87. Accordingly, when the external electrode 88a on the one face 87a of the semiconductor integrated circuit 87 is placed in a manner facing the inspection circuit board 90, it is difficult to electrically connect the external electrode 88b on the other face 87b of the semiconductor integrated circuit 87 and the land electrode 91 of the inspection circuit board 90.
Thus, as illustrated in FIG. 22, in the one face 87a of the semiconductor integrated circuit 87, there is additionally provided a plurality of inspection-use external electrodes 93 connected to the external electrode 88b on the other face 87b through the interior of the board. By use of the conductive contact 81, the external electrode 88a on the one face 87a and the land electrode 91 of the inspection circuit board 90 are electrically connected and at the same time, the inspection-use external electrode 93 on the one face 87a and the land electrode 91 of the inspection circuit board 90 are electrically connected. Accordingly, the external electrodes 88a and 88b on the two faces 87a and 87b of the semiconductor integrated circuit 87 are electrically connected to the land electrode 91 of the inspection circuit board 90, whereby an inspection can be performed for the semiconductor integrated circuit 87.
However, since the inspection-use external electrode 93 are provided in addition to the external electrodes 88a and 88b, the number of external electrodes 88a, 88b and 93 of the semiconductor integrated circuit 87 increases. Consequently, there arises a problem that the overall size of the semiconductor integrated circuit 87 becomes larger, thus limiting effects of high density achieved by stacking.
Consequently, an object of the present invention is to provide an inspection device and inspection method capable of inspecting electric characteristics of a semiconductor integrated circuit having electrodes on two opposite faces thereof without arranging any inspection-use external electrode in the semiconductor integrated circuit.